1.

Form a team
Meaning: To gather a group of people to work on the project
Sample sentence: The first thing a project manager does is form a team of staff who are
best for the project.
2. Team up with
Meaning: To join together to work as a team
Sample sentence: Sometimes on a big project, you may need to team up with other
companies.
3. Pitch in
Meaning: To join in to help with a job or project
Sample sentence: You need a strong team for the project to succeed. Everyone will have
to pitch in their ideas. We need each team member to share five ideas at the meeting
on Monday.
4. Start from scratch
Meaning: To start new from nothing
Sample sentence: Since we will be starting from scratch on this project, we will make the
plan as we go along.
5. Define the phases
Meaning: To break down the project into smaller parts, or phases.
A phase is one part in a series of actions or events. For example, in a library project, the
design phase comes before the building phase.
Sample sentence: We must wait for the project team to define the phases before we can start
work.
6. Set deadlines
Meaning: To set the dates when a job must be finished
A deadline is a date or time when a completed job is due, and set means “to make” in this
phrase.
Sample sentence: We have set deadlines for each phase except the design phase. Does
anyone know how long the design will take?

7. Give the green light

Meaning: To give the signal to begin

Think of this as a traffic light turning green when you’re driving. What do you do when the
light is green? That’s right, green means go. This expression means you can go ahead and
now begin the project.

Sample sentence: We can’t start the project until management gives the green light.
8. Kick off
Meaning: To officially start the project
This phrase is also used in sports. In football and soccer, the game will kick off (begin) when
a player kicks the ball to start play.
Sample sentence: As soon as we kick off the project, we will be very busy.

9. Meet up
Meaning: To come together to talk
Meet up is usually used for short, informal meetings with a small group of people. It is often
used with prepositions such as “in,” “at” and “with” to tell where, at what time or with whom
you will meet up.
Sample sentences:
Since we have a few problems to discuss, let’s meet up in my office.
(meet up in + [where] = tells location)
Please tell everyone to meet up at 3:00 p.m. today.
(meet up at + [when] = tells what time)
The project manager would like to meet up with the finance team.
(meet up with + [whom] = tells which people)
10. Meet the deadline
Meaning: To complete the job by the agreed time
While you can meet new people, we also use the verb “to meet” with deadlines. To meet a
deadline means that you finish the task by the deadline. For example, say you need to send in
your job application by Friday at 3:00. To meet the deadline, you send in your job application
on Friday at noon. If you send in your job application on Friday at 4:00, you did not meet the
deadline (because you were too late).
Sample sentence: We may have to work longer hours to meet the deadline.

11. Schedule a meeting

Meaning: To choose a date, time and place to meet with another person or a group of people.
Sample sentence: Let’s schedule a meeting for this Tuesday to discuss any problems.
12. Behind schedule
Meaning: Overdue, later than planned
If your project was due on Monday, but it is now Thursday, you are behind schedule. The
project was supposed to be finished by now, but you’re still working on it.
Sample sentence: When the project manager hears that the project is behind schedule,
she will want to know the reason why.
13. Ahead of schedule
Meaning: To be completed earlier than planned

Imagine that today is Monday and your project is due on Friday. If you finish it
tomorrow, on Tuesday, then you’ve finished it early and are ahead of schedule. Good job!

Sample sentence: The project manager is happy that the project is ahead of schedule and
thanked the team for their hard work.
14. According to schedule
Meaning: To go as planned

This means that you are doing a good job, there are no delays and everything is going as
planned.

Sample sentence: If the project goes according to schedule, you can expect a nice bonus this
year.
15. On schedule
Meaning: On time, as planned

This phrase means that you are finishing each task on time and not expecting any delays.

Sample sentence: If we can solve all these problems quickly, we will still be on schedule to
finish the project by the end of this month.
You’ll notice #14 and #15 are very similar. In fact, in many situations you can use either
phrase and the meaning is the same. But you might hear “according to schedule” more
often when talking about a list of times—such as a bus schedule, train schedule or a class
timetable.
Note: In phrases #12-15 above, the word schedule can’t be used in its plural form, because it
is part of a set phrase.

16. Put a plan into action

Meaning: To start using a plan or idea
Sample sentence: If we put this plan into action, we may need more time and more people.
17. Plan ahead
Meaning: To think carefully before taking action
Sample sentence: The project manager’s advice is to plan ahead so that the project will go
smoothly.
18. Make a plan
Meaning: To create a way to do something
Sample sentence: How should we advertise this new product? Let’s make a plan now.
19. Stick to the plan
Meaning: To refuse to change from what you have decided, no matter what happens
For example, you and your friend have decided to go to a movie Friday night. On Friday
afternoon, your friend calls to say there is a sale at your favorite store. She asks if you want to
go shopping instead. You decide to stick to the plan, meaning that you will still go watch the
movie.
This is another phrase were the noun, plan, can’t be used in its plural form. Even if you have
many plans, you should still say “stick to the plan,” not “stick to the plans.”
Sample sentence: Changing the design now will take too much time. Let’s just stick to the
plan.
20. Review the plan
Meaning: To inspect or look carefully again at the plan
Sample sentence: If we want to include all these new ideas, we will need to review the plan.
21. Tasked with
Meaning: To be given a task
The verb to task means to give a task (small job) to someone. However, this verb is almost
always used in the passive form with the preposition “with,” which looks like this: have/has
been tasked with.

In that form, the whole phase means to be given a task. For example, if I have been tasked
with calling 20 clients today, that means someone else gave me the job of calling 20 clients.

Sample sentence: Your team has been tasked with finding out why there are so many
customer complaints.
22. Outsource a task
Meaning: To pay another company to do the task
The verb to outsource means to send out the company’s work to someone outside the
company. For example, if you own a small restaurant, you may cook the food yourself
but outsource the desserts to be made by a local baker.
Sample sentence: Since the project team is busy, it might be a good idea to outsource some
tasks to another company.
23. Target date
Meaning: The date to complete something by
Sample sentence: If we keep missing the target dates, this project will not be completed on
time.
24. Target to complete
Meaning: Plan to finish
Sample sentence: We must target to complete phase 1 before the year-end holidays when
most people will be on vacation.
25. Achieve the target
Meaning: To succeed in reaching a goal
Sample sentence: The project team can expect a free lunch if they achieve the target this
month.
26. Create a budget
Meaning: To make a plan on the amount of money to spend and how to spend it
Sample sentence: We need to create a budget that includes the travel expenses of the project
team.
27. Stay on budget
Meaning: To keep within the amount of money you plan to use, and refuse to spend more
Here is yet another phrase where the noun, budget, can’t be used in its plural form (budgets).
Sample sentence: The project manager has reminded us that to stay on budget, we must
remember to keep the costs as low as possible.
28. Increase the budget
Meaning: Add more money to the amount you planned to spend
The opposite of this phrase is decrease the budget, which means to take away from the
amount of money that you planned to spend.
Sample sentence: Management has agreed to increase the budget to cover the cost of testing
the new car.
29. Wrap up the project
Meaning: To finish the project
Sample sentence: Okay, everyone, let’s check all the paperwork and clean up the project
room, then we’ll be ready to wrap up the project.
30. Sign off the project
Meaning: To formally approve and accept the project as finished
Sample sentence: All that remains now is to sign off the project and take the whole project
team out to celebrate.